The Passage Of Time
by Saiclops
Summary: True love comes quietly, without banners or flashing lights; Post Ch.699 AU ; SasuSaku Twoshot. Complete
1. Sakura

**Sakura**

* * *

It has been sixteen hours since the Fourth Shinobi War officially ended.

The village is full of life again, with its citizens returning home. The hospital is brimming with the sick and the injured and Sakura has piled more than she can handle onto her plate.

Despite all this, she sits in a small hospital room, the rhythmic beeping of the monitor being the only sound. Her blonde best friend is perched on a chair beside her, his whiskered face scrunched up in concentration.

Sakura looks at him through the corner of her eyes, at the boy who is currently the nation's hero. He should not be in any condition to walk, or talk, but the nine-tailed fox's chakra that flows through him heals him faster than the average man. Sixteen hours after what has been the most difficult battle of his life, Uzumaki Naruto is as good as new.

Sakura then turns to look at the room's third occupant, who is currently out cold on the bed. Unlike his blonde counterpart, Uchiha Sasuke has yet to recover from his wounds. She has healed all his external injuries, and to anybody else, it would seem as if he were merely sleeping.

Sakura knows that she should feel elated, the war being officially declared as over and her missing teammate having returned home.

But all she can see when she looks at the unconscious boy on the bed, is his face lit up with blue lightning, and his eyes wild with uncontrolled rage.

When Sasuke wakes up from his coma several hours later, the only other presence in the room is that of his blonde best friend.

* * *

It has been two weeks since the Fourth Shinobi War officially ended.

Sakura cannot believe how quickly Konoha has recovered, snapping back to routine so efficiently. She knows, however, that the recovery is only physical, and that the mental wounds are much harder to heal.

She is tired to the bone, but staying idle is not Sakura's cup of tea. She knows she needs to keep busy, or her mind would wander over to certain thoughts that she knows she should stay away from.

Naruto bursts into her office, his face tan and his obscene orange jacket unzipped. She has barely seen him in the past week, as he has had multiple visitors from all over the five nations coming to express their gratitude. She knows Naruto has been enjoying his moment in the spotlight, and she knows he deserves every minute of it.

"You haven't been to see Sasuke," he starts, and Sakura almost smiles. Naruto has never been one for tact and she's secretly glad that that part of him hasn't changed over the years. She looks up into his clear blue eyes and sighs.

"I've been swamped." She says calmly. Naruto frowns.

"Don't make excuses," he says. Sakura sighs again. She often forgets that Naruto is not as clueless as he once was. "He gets discharged today."

"I know," she murmurs softly. She's been keeping count, knowing which floor to avoid during Sasuke's stay at the hospital. Naruto looks at her with an uncharacteristically knowing look on his face.

"Will you ever forgive him?"

Sakura looks away.

"There is nothing to forgive. I am as guilty as he is."

"Then what is the problem? I know he wonders where you are, but he's too stuck up to admit it."

"I seriously doubt that."

Naruto's frown deepens.

"He's going to be put on probation for a year before he can be reinstated. You can't avoid him forever." Naruto says, crossing his arms.

Sakura knows this, but she wants to prepare herself mentally before she can go see him. Naruto gets ready to leave.

"I want Team 7 back together," he says quietly. "That can't happen if you two keep tiptoeing around each other." With that he leaves, slamming the door behind him.

Sakura rests her head on her desk. She wants them together too, but she doesn't know if it's possible to go back to what once was anymore.

* * *

It has been six months since the Fourth Shinobi War officially ended.

Life has returned to normal now. Sakura gets up at dawn to train, then goes to the hospital to work, then returns in the evening to have dinner with her friends before either heading back to the hospital, or going home to sleep.

She is still tired to the bone, overworked beyond her capabilities, but she no longer knows what it feels to be well-rested.

Sasuke is halfway through his probation period. The nations are not happy with him, but the truth about the Uchiha massacre is out, and he has the support of countless shinobi. He spends most of his days training at the grounds and Sakura knows he exhausts himself to the point of passing out on purpose, to fall into a dreamless stupor and avoid the nightmares that he cannot seem to shake off. She knows this because it is the same for her, and she relishes in this strange sort of kinship with the dark-haired boy. She wants to reach out but doesn't know how.

Naruto forces them all to have ramen together every time he's back in the village. The first time they eat together is awkward, with little to no conversation. Naruto sits between Sakura and Sasuke and eats around five bowls. Sakura picks at her food and tries not to make eye contact. Sasuke says nothing. The second time is a little better, as Sakura learns to talk comfortably with Naruto in Sasuke's presence. This is because she knows that even if he never contributes to the conversation, he's always listening.

After six months of uncomfortable silences, Team 7 has finally settled into what it used to be when it was first formed. Sakura only sees Sasuke at these team dinners, but she's content with that. After the first few times, she begins to invite Sai, and the addition of a fourth member makes all the difference in the world. Sai is as reserved as Sasuke, but his clueless comments and dry humour liven up the conversations.

The first time she sees Sasuke outside Ichiraku's is when he shows up at the hospital. She walks into a room only to find him sitting on the bed, his legs swinging off the side. Dressed in dark clothes, he looks oddly out of place on the crisp, white sheets of the hospital bed. He looks up at her as she comes in, and she can feel her throat constricting. She knows, thanks to Shizune, that Sasuke specifically asked for her, refusing to cooperate with any of the other medics. This piece of information makes her both happy and frustrated, but she says nothing of it to Sasuke.

She walks up to him, and puts down her clipboard on the bedside table. Wordlessly, she inspects his wounds and then his eyes, surprised that he lets her do so without complaining. He's healed fully and perfectly and Sakura doesn't expect any less. She tells him as much, and he gives her the barest of smiles.

Sakura can't help but smile back.

* * *

It has been one year since the Fourth Shinobi War officially ended.

Sasuke is finished with his probation and Sakura stands with him and Naruto in Tsunade's office as the Hokage tells him that he's ready to take on missions again. The end of his probation means that Team 7 is officially reinstated and Naruto's eyes sparkle with a kind of joy that Sakura hasn't seen in over three years.

Tsunade surveys the three of them from behind her desk. There's a glint in her eyes that Sakura is all too familiar with.

"You're both still genin," she says, a wide grin spreading across her face. Sasuke's smirk vanishes and Naruto's mouth drops open. Sakura raises a hand to her mouth to hide her smile. "While you two are technically at jounin level, I cannot dish out high ranking missions to ninja that are legally still genin."

"What?!" Naruto screeches, making Sakura wince. "You can't assign us genin missions!" Tsunade laughs, and Sakura is glad to see that her mentor has recovered some of her old humour.

"I'll try not to. Kakashi says that if you two study all the material he gives you, it's possible that you can go straight to becoming jounin in a couple years."

Naruto gapes and Sasuke scowls and Sakura knows it's a blow to their egos. She knows Tsunade is thoroughly enjoying this. She then notices the Hokage looking at her. Tsunade pulls out a small envelope and waves it in their faces.

"Sakura," she starts. "I have a recommendation here from Kakashi, and he asks that I promote you to jounin."

Sakura can feel her stomach dropping, and she wants to pinch herself to make sure this isn't all a dream. Tsunade is smiling, and pride is evident in her hazel eyes. The humming in her ears drowns out Naruto's exclamations and all she can do is nod mutely in Hokage's direction.

In the chaos that ensues after Tsunade's announcement, largely thanks to Naruto's loud voice, Sakura is almost sure she imagines Sasuke quietly mutter congratulations in her ear.

* * *

It has been two years since the Fourth Shinobi War officially ended.

Sakura is back again in the Hokage's office, but the face behind the desk is not that of her beloved mentor. Kakashi sits in what used to be Tsunade's seat, his face hidden behind the familiar mask. It has been a mere five months since he's been named the Sixth Hokage, and he already looks under the weather.

Kakashi declares Naruto and Sasuke jounin, and Naruto celebrates loudly. Kakashi's eyes crinkle up, the only giveaway that he's smiling behind that mask. He doesn't say it, but Sakura knows he's proud of the students he once taught. She listens as Naruto exuberantly invites Kakashi out for a bowl of ramen, and watches as Sasuke smacks him on the back of the head, a grin breaking out onto her face. These interactions are painstakingly familiar, and they take her back to a time she holds very close to her heart.

They leave the Hokage's office and Naruto insists on stopping by Ichiraku's.

Sakura sits between her boys, and decides that the meal is on her. She listens to Naruto chatter on about all the S-rank missions that he plans on carrying out now that he's a jounin, with Sasuke speaking up occasionally to offer a scathing remark.

It's taken them two years, but Team 7 finally feels like home.

* * *

It has been four years since the Fourth Shinobi War officially ended.

Naruto and Sasuke qualify for ANBU in record time, and are often gone. Sakura is lonely, and tries not to think about how this is the second time her boys have left her behind.

It is this loneliness that drives her to request a genin team. She's assigned two boys and one girl. Between her students, running the hospital alongside Tsunade, and her own training, Sakura immerses herself into a busy lifestyle.

She eats meals with Ino and Hinata whenever she can, and trains alongside TenTen and Lee. She can feel herself distancing from Naruto and Sasuke, but cannot figure out a way to close off that gap. She's often too busy to see them when they are back in town, and their stay in the village is often short. Sakura knows Naruto wants to complete as many missions as he can. It's common knowledge that he's next in line to be Hokage, and Kakashi keeps him busy. She also knows that Sasuke spends a large portion of his time outside the village, because Konoha holds too many memories for him that he'd rather forget. She knows this, but a part of her is angry at her boys.

She runs into Naruto one day as she's walking to work, and he looks surprised to see her. She hasn't seen him for two months, and she almost doesn't recognise him.

Naruto offers to walk her to the hospital, and talks the entire way there. He fills her in about his missions, and the ramen that he's looking forward to eating. He talks about anything and everything and Sakura finds that for once, she doesn't mind.

When he leaves her at the hospital entrance, his eyes are sad and Sakura knows he feels bad. She can feel guilt creeping into her for being angry at her best friend for something he has no control over. She hugs him around the middle, sends him off with a smile, and watches his back as he jogs back to Ichiraku's.

* * *

It has been six years since the Fourth Shinobi War officially ended.

Sakura watches her genin pass their Chuunin exams on the first try with flying colours and feels pride. She watches them don their flak jackets, wide grins on their faces, and hopes that they never see war.

Sasuke stands beside her, tall and dark and Sakura wonders what his reasons were for coming out to see the final round of exams. It's a hot day and he's wearing a loose black sleeveless top and she can see the ANBU tattoo imprinted on his shoulder, the black ink a stark contrast against his pale skin.

They walk back into the village together, making light conversation about the matchups that took place during the exams. Sakura notices that Sasuke catches the eyes of various females on the streets. Even after all these years he's still desperately handsome, his messy dark hair and aloof demeanour making the ladies flock to him. She isn't sure that he's aware of all the attention but it's there nonetheless.

Her feelings toward Sasuke have been pushed into a small corner of her heart that will always be reserved just for him. The sharp ache that she used to feel has now dulled, like a bruise that never quite heals. She doesn't tell him this, knowing that her love will only be a burden to the man standing next to her. They've finally stumbled toward a close friendship and Sakura has no intention of breaking that fragile bond. Sasuke makes sure to walk her to her apartment and Sakura is grateful.

She watches her friends fall in love and is happy for them. She watches Naruto finally muster up the courage to ask Hinata out for a bowl of ramen and is pleased to see that the dark haired Hyuuga stays conscious the entire time. She watches Sai demand a date out of Ino, and almost laughs as she remembers Ino's baffled expression. She watches Shikamaru complain about Temari, and Temari complain about Shikamaru, knowing full well that neither can live without the other.

She wonders if there will ever be a point in her life where she isn't hopelessly in love with Sasuke.

Reality hits her in the face when she's walking back home after a particularly long shift at the hospital one night. Naruto's blonde head in a nearby bar catches her eye and she stops in her tracks. Both of her boys are sitting inside, surrounded by other male members of rookie nine, cups of sake in front of them. She starts walking in their direction, when she notices a kunoichi she vaguely knows saunter up to the Uchiha. She watches the woman drop in the seat next to him and whisper something in his ear. Naruto, too busy talking loudly with Inuzuka Kiba doesn't even notice the interaction.

Sakura's heart skips a beat when she sees Sasuke lean in and smirk in reply to the woman, it suddenly becoming clear that he's not going to push her away anytime soon. Jealousy flares up inside Sakura and she wonders when she began to think of Sasuke as exclusively _hers_ but she realises now that he doesn't belong to anybody.

It's been six years since the war ended and Sakura knows that Sasuke is finally ready to move on. Sakura understands that she's barely a part of Sasuke's life, and that he doesn't think of her as anything more than a comrade and a friend. But that sharp ache in her chest is back, like an old wound reopened and Sakura knows that she's just as in love with him now as she was two, three, four years ago.

She turns on her heel and walks away before she witnesses anything else that can potentially tear her apart, and misses Sasuke's head turning around to stare at her retreating figure with an unreadable expression on his face.

* * *

It has been eight years since the Fourth Shinobi War officially ended.

Sakura's last patient for the day is Kiba and he's waiting for her in a hospital room. She heals his broken ribs and tells him to take it easy, and he comes clean and asks her out on a date.

Sakura is too surprised to say no, so she agrees to meet him outside the hospital at the end of her shift. When she opens the main doors, he's waiting for her on the steps, a small smile on his face.

Sakura knows Kiba quite well, having spent a lot of time with him when Team 7 and Team 8 had joint dinners thanks to Naruto and Hinata. She enjoys his company as he's easy to talk to and someone she knows she can trust.

They decide on getting some barbecue, because Kiba knows that ramen is exclusive to Team 7 and Sakura appreciates his tact. They spend a good evening talking and laughing and Sakura feels at ease. At the end of the night, she's giddy with happiness and can convince herself that she'll be okay with someone else.

She gets called back to the hospital and Kiba offers to walk her, despite her assurances that she's fine. He walks her all the way to her office and kisses her on the cheek before giving her a small wave and jogging off.

Sakura enters her office to grab her lab-coat, readying herself to go to Emergency when she runs into the hard chest of Uchiha Sasuke.

He grabs her shoulder to steady her and she looks up at him. He's scowling profusely and Sakura wonders the reasons behind his bad temper.

"What were you doing with Kiba?" he asks, his voice seething. She raises her eyebrows, as this was the last thing she'd expected out of the dark-haired man.

"What're you doing here?" she asks, pulling on her coat and grabbing her clipboard. Sasuke's scowl deepens, but he answers her anyway.

"One of my squad is injured," he says quietly, as they both walk down to Emergency. "Tsunade said she'd call you in so I waited inside your office." She secretly wonders how he managed to get into her office without a key.

"What happened?" she asks and Sasuke gives her a brief overview of their mission. She digests this knowledge and succeeds in healing his teammate.

They walk out of the hospital together and the night air is cold. Sakura shudders slightly and moves closer to Sasuke. She's glad that he doesn't pull away, because the heat radiating from his body soothes her shivering.

"What were you doing with Kiba?" he asks again and Sakura shrugs and explains everything. She peers at his face to see if he reacts, but Sasuke's countenance is like a blank slate. He nods once she's done telling him her side of the story.

"He's a good man," he says and Sakura wonders why she can feel her heart breaking.

* * *

It has been ten years since the Fourth Shinobi War officially ended.

Sakura blinks open her eyes and a hospital room slides into focus. Her body feels like lead and she tries to move her fingers and fails. Tsunade stands over her, a relieved expression on her face.

"Thank god you're up," she says breathlessly.

"What happened?" mutters Sakura, slowly sitting up, trying to ignore the shooting pain in her abdomen. The last thing she remembers was being on the way back to Konoha after a particularly rough assassination mission with Naruto's ANBU squad. She had been chosen as the lead medic on the team and had been more than happy to get out of the village for a few days.

"One of the subordinates of your target came after your team and managed to impale you," Tsunade says shortly. "You've been out for a couple days, you lost quite a bit of blood. Naruto carried you back." She walks over to the door, opens it and two men rush in.

Naruto runs straight to her and pulls her into a tight hug. She tries to ignore the dull pain in her stomach as she puts her arms around him. He smells like miso and home and Sakura breathes him in.

"I'm sorry," he says repeatedly, fresh tears forming in his cerulean eyes. He's older now, a man instead of a boy, but in that moment Sakura sees the twelve-year old that she'd initially known. She pats his head and smiles at him and tells him that she's okay and he gives her a weak smile in return.

Her eyes move to the second figure and she takes in Sasuke's appearance with a note of surprise. He appears dishevelled, his clothes wrinkled, his eyes tired. She smiles at him and he looks away.

Long after Naruto leaves, Sasuke takes up a seat beside her bed.

"Are you sure you're alright?" he asks in his usual quiet voice and Sakura is surprised to hear it sound so strained. She nods at him and he nods back and puts his hand on her shoulder. Sakura hesitates for a split second before pulling him into a hug. In contrast to Naruto, Sasuke always smells of campfires and grass, and Sakura guiltily notes that she enjoys this embrace over the one shared with the loud-mouthed blonde. She's surprised when instead of pulling away, Sasuke snakes his arms around her and pulls her to him. They stay like that for a while, Sasuke resting his chin on top of her head, and Sakura thinks she might just fall asleep in his hold.

It's a little while after he leaves her room that Sakura realises how worried he'd really been for her life.

It is after her near-death experience that she notices the changes. Sasuke begins to seek her out more, and she sees more of him than she does of Naruto. She eats meals with him and he walks her home and she finds that they have more in common than she'd initially thought. He's naturally intelligent and one of the few people outside the hospital who can keep up with her babbling on about her patients, even going as far as to offer his own insights. He helps her with her training, and borrows her medical textbooks, and she finds that he is rather pleasant company.

She often wonders why he spends so much time with her but she has no answers. When she asks Naruto, he laughs loudly and calls her dense. She wonders what _Naruto_ possibly knows that she doesn't.

* * *

It has been twelve years since the Fourth Shinobi War officially ended.

Sakura and Sasuke stand amongst the crowd as Kakashi names Naruto his successor. Naruto stands tall and proud, his grin extending from ear to ear. Sakura feels tears forming in her eyes and she notices Sasuke watching his best friend with a soft smile on his face. He turns slightly and notices that she's about to cry and gives her arm a slight squeeze.

Once the ceremony is over she and Sasuke walk down the streets in silence. It's difficult to comprehend the fact that the Number One Knuckleheaded Ninja is now their Seventh Hokage.

Sasuke stops in his tracks and Sakura looks at him questioningly.

"Would you like to go out for dinner?" he asks, his voice so quiet that Sakura isn't sure she hears him right.

"Now?" she asks, surprised. Its noon and the sun is bright in the sky. "I think it's lunchtime Sasuke."

Sasuke scowls and shoves his hands in his pocket.

"Later," he says. "Whenever you're free,"

"Okay? Do you want to ask Naruto and Kakashi? I haven't seen Kakashi in a while I wonder how he is-,"

"I meant just the two of us,"

Sakura stops babbling and stares at Sasuke. She opens her mouth, and then closes it again, gaping at him like a fish. Sasuke smirks at her expression.

"Are you asking me out?" she asks at last. Sasuke rolls his eyes.

"This isn't the first time I've done it," he says shortly and Sakura can feel her stomach dropping. Suddenly Naruto laughing at her and calling her dense makes all the sense in the world.

"How long have you been asking me out on dates?" asks Sakura feeling dazed. Sasuke's smirk widens.

"For the past two years," he says nonchalantly. Sakura can feel her ears going warm.

"Have we-," she struggles to find the words. "Are you saying we've been _dating_ for the past two years and I haven't been aware?"

"If that's what you want to call it," he says, shrugging. Sakura stalks over to him and smacks him on the arm. He winces.

"Be more obvious when you ask a girl out!" she berates. "We haven't even _kissed_ and it's been two years!" She can hear Sasuke sigh tiredly next to her and is about to tell him off when he dips his head down and plants a light kiss on her lips.

When he pulls away, he's grinning and Sakura decides that a smile suits Sasuke best.

Sasuke looks at her for a minute and his expression turns blank. They stand there, in the middle of the busy street looking at each other.

"So, dinner?" asks Sasuke, his expression serious. He begins walking in the direction of her apartment and Sakura scowls as she stares at him. He realises that she's not following him and turns around to look at her in question.

Sakura can feel her scowl melt into a grin and she feels the enormous weight she didn't know she'd been carrying lift off her shoulders. She walks quickly to catch up to him and when she links her arm with his, he doesn't pull away.


	2. Sasuke

**Sasuke**

* * *

It has been twenty-four hours since the Fourth Shinobi War officially ended.

Or that is what the clock on the wall tells him when he wakes up. He doesn't need to look outside the window to know that he's in Konoha, but he feels too defeated to express his displeasure.

Naruto is dozing off on a chair at the foot of his bed. Not for the first time, Sasuke feels a stab of envy when he sees how quickly his so-called best friend has recovered. He knows that all his wounds have been healed, and he can guess who performed the surgery, but his body still feels like lead.

He sits up, the rhythmic beeping of the monitor being the only sound in the room. His window is open, and he can feel the breeze through it. The air smells so familiar that something inside him aches.

Turning to look around, he notices a second, unoccupied, chair beside his bed. He stares at it for quite a while, emotions mixed. His eyes are then drawn to the bedside table and he notices a tall glass bottle holding fresh daffodils. Once again, he can guess who is behind their presence in his rather pale room. Male shinobi are not trained in the language of flowers, but Sasuke remembers enough from what his mother taught him all those years ago.

Daffodils, virtually synonymous with spring, symbolise rebirth and new beginnings.

* * *

It has been two weeks since the Fourth Shinobi War officially ended.

Naruto has been visiting him in the hospital every single day, and he is here now, waiting as Sasuke gets discharged. An unfamiliar medic performs the check-up and scribbles something on a clipboard. She signs his papers and hands them to him with a perky smile on her face. Naruto's grin is blinding.

They walk out of the hospital together and Sasuke is surprised to see that Konoha has changed. The shops lining the street are no longer familiar, and he feels like a stranger in his own hometown. Naruto notices his expression.

"The entire village was destroyed when Pein attacked," he explains, clasping his hands behind his head. "We had to rebuild from scratch."

Sasuke digests this information and wonders why he didn't guess it before. Three long years have passed since his defection and time has not stood still. He hopes the Uchiha compound is intact.

Naruto leads him to the Hokage's office and Sasuke stands uncomfortably in front of Tsunade. This woman is unfamiliar to him and memories of the Kage Summit flood his mind. The expression in her sharp, hazel eyes is unfriendly and Sasuke can feel her overwhelming strength dominate the room. He distractedly notices Naruto slip out and shut the door behind him.

Tsunade surveys him for what feels like hours.

"I take it you're back to stay." She says.

"I have nowhere else to go." He replies. She props an elbow on her desk and rests her cheek on her palm.

"I don't like you, but your teammates fought for your case. Probation for a year. Take it or stand trial."

"I'll take it." Sasuke mutters and Tsunade smiles grimly. She dismisses him rather rudely and he finds himself standing outside the Hokage Tower. Naruto runs up to him.

"Sorry, I went to see Sakura," he offers. "How did it go?"

Sasuke tells him and Naruto seems satisfied. Indeed, for an international criminal of Sasuke's level, probation for a year is incredibly light punishment. He thinks it's related to the role he played in defeating Madara. He's too distracted in his own thoughts, but he vaguely hears Naruto ask him out to ramen.

"I wanted to ask Sakura to join us, but she seems busy." He says, a frown on his face. Sasuke mentally takes note of this. He hasn't seen his pink-haired ex-teammate since the battlefield. Sometimes, while he was at the hospital, he would see a quick flash of pink, but it'd be gone before he had time to react.

It doesn't take a genius to realise that Sakura has been avoiding him but Sasuke knows he owes her space after what they've been through.

He's prepared to wait for her to approach him whenever she feels that she's ready.

* * *

It has been six months since the Fourth Shinobi War officially ended.

Sasuke falls into a routine. He gets up at dawn to train, heads home for lunch, then meets up with Naruto to train some more.

He's bored beyond belief, stuck within the confines of the village that holds so many traumatic memories. He's returned to the Uchiha Compound, still surprisingly undamaged, and the large house he grew up in is stark and empty. Sasuke can feel the ghosts of his deceased family haunting him day and night, as he sleeps just two doors away from the spot his parents were murdered in. At night, his dreams are riddled with nightmares that have him waking up in cold sweat. In desperation, he begins to tire himself out on purpose.

Naruto forces him to have ramen together with Sakura every time he's back in the village. The first time they eat together is awkward. Naruto babbles loudly between them and eats enough ramen to feed an entire village. Sakura says very little and picks at her food. Her hair is growing longer each month and it's almost at the length it was when they were newly-appointed genin. She looks heartbreakingly like the little girl that used to latch herself onto him and Sasuke is reminded of all the times he's wronged her. He listens in silence as Naruto and Sakura converse, amazed at how well they get along with each other. A side of him envies them and the bond that they share, but he knows he only has himself to blame for not being a part of it.

It takes a few tries, but Team 7 learns to get along like they once used to. Sakura invites his replacement and Sasuke desperately wants to show his frustration, but he's trained rigorously in the art of keeping himself together. He watches Sai make fun of Sakura and Sakura hit him in retaliation and wonders why he feels more alone now than he does in the confines of his empty house.

The first time he sees Sakura outside Ichiraku's is at the hospital. He's invited for a final check-up and he demands that Sakura be the medic that inspects him. He's fed up with the giggling girls and he just wants someone that he can trust to be competent. He's mildly surprised when the door opens and Sakura walks in, and realises he was doubtful that his demands would be answered. Her expression is that of schooled calm, and Sasuke instantly knows that she's aware that she's been specially requested. The thought makes the back of his neck go warm and he hopes she doesn't notice.

The check-up itself lasts only a short amount of time and Sakura tells him he's healed fully. The guarded expression in her eyes is unfamiliar and he wonders when she stopped wearing her heart on her sleeve. He wants to apologise but he doesn't know what he can say that could improve their current situation. Every time he looks at her, he is taken back to a day where his hand was around her neck, her eyes wide with fear and shock.

So, he offers her a small smile and is surprised when she returns it with a bright one of her own.

* * *

It has been one year since the Fourth Shinobi War officially ended.

Sasuke stands with Sakura and Naruto in Tsunade's office as she announces the end of his probation. He feels as though a weight has been lifted off his shoulders as the Hokage informs him that he's ready to take on missions again. This also means that Team 7 is reinstated, something that Naruto cannot stop smiling about.

Tsunade surveys the three of them from behind her desk.

"You're both still genin," she says, a wide grin spreading across her face. Sasuke's feels his smirk vanishing and Naruto's mouth drops open. Sakura raises a hand to her mouth as if to hide her smile. "While you two are technically at jounin level, I cannot dish out high ranking missions to ninja that are legally still genin."

"What?!" Naruto screeches, and Sasuke wonders, not for the first time, how the idiot can be so loud. "You can't assign us genin missions!" Tsunade laughs, and Sasuke scowls at the fact that she's taking pleasure in their pain.

"I'll try not to. Kakashi says that if you two study all the material he gives you, it's possible that you can go straight to becoming jounin in a couple years."

Naruto gapes, but Sasuke knows that she must have pulled some strings to allow them to completely forgo the Chuunin exams. Doing them would be a waste of time, since he and Naruto are well past Chuunin level and would probably end up hurting some unsuspecting kids. Tsunade is now watching Sakura as she pulls out an envelope.

"Sakura," she starts. "I have a recommendation here from Kakashi, and he asks that I promote you to jounin."

Sasuke turns to look at the girl standing next to him. Tsunade is smiling, and Naruto is yelling but Sakura appears as if she hears none of it. Sasuke feels a stab of pride inside him for his teammate and knows that the promotion is well deserved.

Amidst all the chaos that ensues, he makes sure to congratulate her quietly, but he's not sure if she hears him.

* * *

It has been two years since the Fourth Shinobi War officially ended.

Sasuke is back again in the Hokage's office, but the face behind the desk is not that of the ill-tempered blonde woman. Kakashi sits in what used to be Tsunade's seat, his face hidden behind the familiar mask.

Kakashi informs him and Naruto that they've been promoted amidst Naruto's gleeful cheers. Sasuke knows his old teacher is smiling with pride and he can't help but chuckle at Naruto and Sakura's happy faces. In typical Team 7 fashion, they decide to celebrate with bowls of ramen.

Sakura sits between him and Naruto this time and offers to pay. Sasuke can barely hear Naruto's mind-numbing chatter over the feeling of her elbow brushing his every now and then. She smells like coconut shampoo and Sasuke feels a kind of peace he hasn't felt since he was seven years old.

* * *

It has been four years since the Fourth Shinobi War officially ended.

Sasuke celebrates with Naruto over their ANBU promotion and although he was unable to beat his brother's record, he feels as though he can finally stand on equal footing with him. Kakashi showers them both with numerous missions, and he's more than happy to take them all. He has yet to escape the nightmares that haunt him and he realises that his dreams are lighter the farther he is away from the village.

He hardly sees Naruto, being assigned to different squads, and he barely even sees Sakura. He does, however, has to put up with Sai as a teammate. Sasuke decides he just doesn't like the man, for reasons that are so petty he cannot voice them out loud. Despite all of this, Sasuke doesn't deny Sai's talent in the field and finds that they work well together.

Weeks turn to months and he works tirelessly. He now dreams of small hands and big, green eyes and the emotions that come with this are so unfamiliar that he attempts to compartmentalise as best as he can. The Sakura that visits him in his dreams is far more beautiful than he remembers her to be and he convinces himself that he's merely glorifying her presence due to her prolonged absence in his life. The rest of his friends find significant others to settle down with and Sasuke wonders if there will ever come a day where he'll find a woman that is not his teammate. Sakura is off-limits, considering how much he's hurt her in the past and he's convinced that she no longer feels the same way. They've built up a fragile bond over the past few years and settled into what is a close friendship and Sasuke knows there is no way he's going to risk that.

An opportunity presents itself when Naruto holds a guy's night at a local bar one evening, and invites every male shinobi that he can get a hold of. It's loud, and rowdy and not at all Sasuke's cup of tea but a few bottles of sake later, he's inebriated enough to enjoy the atmosphere. A new kind of nightmare, in the form of a pink-haired girl, has taken over his life and he's desperate to forget all about it. When he sees an attractive kunoichi walk up to him, he doesn't push her away. She's beautiful, with long dark hair, chocolate brown eyes, and tanned skin. She sits herself down next to him and starts talking, but Sasuke doesn't hear a word she says.

He sees a flash of pink in the corner of his eyes and turns around to see Sakura walk in the direction of her home, clearly after finishing a long shift at the hospital. Her hair is messy and she's holding a stack of papers under her arm and looks far from put-together. Despite all of this, she appears far more inviting than the busty brunette currently latched onto his arm.

Something clicks in Sasuke's head, as if a blurry picture suddenly sliding into focus. Without a second thought, he gets up, pays for his drinks and heads home for the night.

* * *

It has been eight years since the Fourth Shinobi War officially ended.

Sasuke rushes back to the village, his ANBU squad in tow. He can feel the cool autumn breeze hit his face, making his eyes water, but he doesn't care. The mission was a success, but at a cost. One of his teammates was badly injured, blood pouring from him in rivers. They were rushing back to the village to get him the medical help that he needed.

When they arrive at the hospital, Tsunade ushers him in and barks at his teammates to leave. Being the team leader, he feels responsible and follows her into Emergency.

"Get Sakura," she says to a fellow medic, rolling up her sleeves. "She went out somewhere for dinner, so page her, and tell her to come back," The medic nods and rushes off. Tsunade turns to him, an unreadable expression on her face. "Go home Uchiha," she says tiredly. "You did well bringing him back as quickly as possible. Leave it to us now."

Sasuke doesn't complain and leaves her, but instead of going home as told, he makes his way to Sakura's office, knowing she will drop by there before heading to the surgery. The door is unlocked so he lets himself in and props himself up on her desk and closes his eyes in exhaustion. He doesn't bother turning the lights on

He feels Sakura's chakra signature before he hears her and realises she's not alone. Getting up slowly, he notices she's with Kiba, who walks her halfway down the hallway before kissing her lightly on the cheek and scampering off. Sasuke watches this unfold, a bubble of anger seeping into him. He watches as Sakura enters her office and walks up to her. In the dark, she doesn't notice him and runs straight into his chest. He grabs her shoulder to steady her, trying to keep his face smooth.

"What were you doing with Kiba?" he can't help but ask, trying to keep the edge out of his voice. She raises her eyebrows at him and he knows how he must sound.

"What're you doing here?' she asks, pulling on her lab coat and grabbing a clipboard.

"One of my squad is injured." He says as they walk down to Emergency. "Tsunade said she's call you in so I waited inside your office."

"What happened?" she asks and he offers her an overview of the mission. He watches as she takes in this information.

She forces him to wait outside Emergency and his thoughts wander back to Kiba. It is no surprise that she's seeing someone, and Sasuke has expected this to happen. After the initial frustration has worn off, he's almost happy for her. He cannot offer her the happiness she deserves, so he's glad someone else can.

When she tells him about Kiba after the surgery, he guards his expression and tells her he's a good man.

* * *

It has been ten years since the Fourth Shinobi War ended.

Naruto appears at his door in the middle of night and knocks loudly. Sasuke rips the door open to put him in his place when he takes in the blonde's appearance. Naruto's orange jacket is unzipped, his hair is streaked with sweat and his eyes are void of their usual twinkle.

Sasuke's eyesight, even without the Sharingan, has always been better than average, and he spots the blood on his best friend's shirt right away.

"It's Sakura," Naruto says, but that is enough to make Sasuke's knees feel weak. He doesn't know how he makes it to the hospital, but before he knows it, they're in the waiting room.

Naruto slides into the chair beside him, quiet for once in his life. He rests his head against the wall behind him, relaxing into his seat and closing his eyes.

Sasuke cannot find it in himself to relax and he sits rigidly, fingers clutching his loose pants in a death grip. He doesn't want to ask Naruto for the details, but the question is out of his mouth before he can control it.

Naruto doesn't answer for some time and Sasuke is positive that his friend is about to burst into tears right there.

"I picked her as the lead medic for my mission," he admits, guilt laced in his voice. "I thought that out of all qualified medics, she'd be the one I'm most comfortable with working. For the most part, the assassination went well. On our way back, we got ambushed by one of the subordinates of the drug lord we were ordered to take down," His head drops into his hands and his voice comes out thick and muffled. "I was so stupid. We should've double-checked to make sure everyone was taken care of."

Sasuke wants to get angry and scream at Naruto but he's older now, and knows better. He observes the state the blonde boy is in and sighs.

"She'll be fine," he says, and is surprised to hear his voice come out so calm. He's trying to convince himself as much as Naruto. "These things happen. Tsunade will fix her up."

Still, it takes two whole days for Sakura to come out of her coma. When Tsunade opens the door to let them in, Naruto rushes in first and Sasuke lets him.

He walks into the room to see Naruto already pulling Sakura into a hug, apologising repeatedly, all tears and sobs. Sakura pats his head and smiles at him and tells him it's okay

She looks up at him then and takes him in. Sasuke knows how he must look, for he's been living in the hospital's waiting room for the past two days. She offers him one of her smiles and he feels the back of his neck heating up.

Naruto leaves first, off to see Hinata Hyuuga, no doubt. Sasuke walks over to Sakura's bed and takes a seat beside her bed.

"Are you sure you're alright?" he asks. Sakura nods at him and he automatically moves to put a hand on her shoulder. He can feel Sakura hesitating and he's just wondering if he's made her uncomfortable when she leans in and wraps her arms around his torso, burying her face in the fabric of his shirt. Sasuke's first coherent thought is that he must smell bad, not having had the opportunity to go home and change. He pulls her closer to him and rests his chin on her forehead. They remain that way for a while and Sasuke, being an amateur in the field of social interactions, wonders when it would be appropriate to let go.

He doesn't know what changes after that moment, but he feels the need to keep Sakura within reach. He spends more time with her, and realises he enjoys her company far more than he already knew he would.

One day, during lunch, Naruto asks him something Sasuke had hoped he'd never would.

"Do you love her?" It's a simple question and Naruto throws it at him so casually, while twirling his noodles between his chopsticks, that Sasuke is caught off-guard.

"I'm not sure what you mean," he says in reply and Naruto scoffs and looks up at him.

"You've been horribly obvious about it for the last two years," he raises his eyebrows at Sasuke, a sly grin spreading across his face. "Or has it been _four_ years?"

Sasuke scowls and shoves a wad of pork into his mouth.

"That's none of your business," he mutters.

"It so is! Tell me, are you the reason Kiba never asked Sakura out on a second date?"

Sasuke freezes for a split second, but Naruto is quick enough to catch the reaction. He breaks off into peals of laughter and by the time he's done, there's tears in his eyes.

"I _knew_ it! Kiba looked genuinely scared when I asked him. _What exactly_ did you say to him?"

Sasuke smirked, and doesn't answer, feeling that it's best if he keeps that one a secret.

"Just make a move Sasuke," says Naruto, wiping his eyes with his sleeve, cheeks still tainted red from all the laughing. "It's about time."

* * *

It has been twelve years since the Fourth Shinobi War officially ended.

Naruto is named the Seventh Hokage and it's a very popular vote indeed. The entire village celebrates the occasion and Naruto ends up bursting into tears at his own acceptance speech.

Sasuke cannot help but smile as he watches his best friend reach the dream that no one thought he would. Sakura stands beside him, desperately trying to hide the fact that she's crying in public.

They walk back after the ceremony in silence. Sasuke stops in his tracks and Sakura looks up at him, eyebrows raised.

"Would you like to go out for dinner?" he asks, and wonders why is palms are suddenly so clammy. Prior to his ceremony, Naruto had told him, not in very many words, that Sakura was blissfully unaware of the status of their relationship. This had irritated Sasuke to no end, especially since Naruto found this fact extremely amusing.

"Bastard can't even ask a girl out," he'd said, much to Sasuke's chagrin.

He looks at Sakura now, and clenches his fists.

"Now?" she asks wonderingly. Sasuke bites the inside of his cheek when he realises it's noon. "I think it's lunchtime Sasuke."

"Later," he mumbles. "Whenever you're free."

"Okay?" she says. "Do you want to ask Naruto and Kakashi? I haven't seen Kakashi in a while."

She continues to babble and Sasuke can feel his patience running thin.

"I meant just the two of us."

She shuts up and stares at him and he feels the nervousness creep into him. It's a miracle how someone this small can make him feel so on edge.

"Are you asking me out?" she asks and Sasuke can't stop himself from rolling his eyes. Naruto had been right. He had taken Sakura out on countless meals, trained with her, spent time with her and the idiot still hadn't a clue.

"This isn't the first time I've done it." He says, sounding affronted and watches as Sakura digests this information. Sasuke suddenly feels the urge to repeatedly hit his head against a wall.

"How long have you been asking me out on dates?" she asks slowly.

"For the past two years," he says, trying not to sound as embarrassed as he feels. He watches as she struggles to find words.

"Are you saying we've been dating for the past two years and I haven't been aware?"

 _Yes_ , Sasuke thinks.

"If that's what you want to call it," he says, trying to appear nonchalant. She's walking over to him and before he knows it, she smacks him on the arm. He winces and wonders, not for the first time, if she forgets how strong she really is.

"Be more obvious when you ask a girl out!" she's saying. "We haven't even kissed and it's been two years!" She continues to babble but Sasuke is tired and he wonders again how someone so annoying could take up residence in his heart. In a reflex, he dips his head down and kisses her lightly on the lips. When he pulls away, he decides that it's not such a bad feeling after all. He realises he's grinning.

"So, dinner?" he asks. He walks past her and when he realises she's not following him he stops and turns to look at her.

Sakura is smiling at him now, a large and blinding smile, that makes all his worries melt away. She jogs up to him and links her arm with his and he decides that this is not such a bad feeling either.

Maybe he should buy her some daffodils tomorrow. To celebrate all the new beginnings

* * *

 **Author's Note** : I wasn't going to post this, and this story was meant to be a one-shot. But I was tempted to do a Sasuke version. I realise he came out to be more cheesy than I intended but I always assume Sasuke to be somewhat sentimental in his head. He just never voices it. Yeah. Let's just go with that.

Who knows, maybe one day I'll feel the need to do a third chapter.


End file.
